Parent Teacher Home Visits and the Power of Trusting Relationships: 25 Years of Impact

“It changed my life. This is the tool that kept me in my teaching career until today. This is the one thing that brought me joy at the end of my crazy day…This program does change teacher mindsets. Well, I’m proof positive. You can see it in data. You can see it when people are speaking in front of you, but it’s changed my life.” –Don Diehl, PTHV 

As Parent Teacher Home Visits (PTHV) kicked off its 25th year, we heard an impactful exchange about the experiences, successes and continued work of this organization and the people who continue to make such real, long-term differences in students’ lives. Each speaker shared their own “origin story” with PTHV, such as having their own home visit as a child, searching for ways to help their own child or student succeed, implementing the model in their community or going on a home visit in their district.

“When I see [my daughter], I always see Mr. Ford. I always think about this one person. The only reason I am here today is because of this one teacher that cared enough about this single mom in a very lonely community, who didn’t have an education, didn’t know how to help her child. It created a whole curriculum, just so we could help our children succeed.” –Yesenia Ramirez, PTHV

The stories resonated deeply with participants, especially during the moderated discussion as the speakers touched on both the burnout being experienced by educators and the silver linings they see after the most acute times in the pandemic crisis.

“Somebody said schools should be joyful places, and I love that idea of schools exuding joy and exhibiting joy for everybody. Obviously for students, for that love of learning, but also for teachers and other educators, because they have been through so much during these past few years. And we’ve heard over and over and over again even before the pandemic, that this practice of building those relationships with families is what keeps educators in the profession. And when they’re feeling overwhelmed, this is the thing that fills their buckets and they want it, and it makes them want to stay in it.” –Gina Martinez-Keddy, PTHV